Noisy neighbour complaint

Private Owner Occupier Dwellings

If you have a noisy neighbour and wish to pursue a noise complaint, you have two options available to you to resolve the issue:

  1. Mediation

This service is available free of charge and seeks to bring the two parties together to resolve the conflict away from court. For further information, contact:

Mediation Northside at T: 01 8482988 (www.nclc.ie)

Mediation Ballymun at T: 01 8625805 (www.bclc.ie)

South Dublin Mediation Services at T: 01 4515910

 

  1. Court Action (Section 108)

You can apply to your local District Court for a Court Order under Section 108 of the Environmental Protection Act, 1992. This is an action which you can take yourself, the fee is typically €20, and your local District Court Office can provide you with further information on this process. They will advise you of a date for your court hearing and will also give you information about serving a copy of the application on your neighbour, as well as evidence you must bring with you to the hearing. A copy of the S108 form can be found here. 

If you take either of these actions, please note the following:

In both situations you will be required to explain what the noise nuisance is. It is advisable to keep a record of the noise issue including a noise log detailing the timeline of noise nuisance events, as well as making brief notes on any steps you have taken to resolve the issue before mediation or court. A noise log is attached here for your convenience. 

Keep copies of any supporting material, e.g. letters you have sent to address the issue previously. You should consider what you would like the outcome of the process to be, bearing in mind that in some cases, the noise nuisance cannot be fully eliminated, but restrictions may be possible to reduce the impact of the noise upon you e.g. restricting the times of day that certain activities are carried out. 

 

Local Authority Dwellings 

If you have a noisy neighbour who is a tenant of Fingal County Council, the Housing Section may be able to assist in this matter. They can be contacted at  [email protected].</span>

 

Private Rented Dwellings

If you are having an issue with noise from a private rented dwelling, you can:

  • Contact the landlord and notify them of the noise nuisance issue.
  • Contact the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB), who will engage with the landlord to enforce the tenant's obligations not to engage in an anti-social manner. Please note that the property in question must be on the RTB register to pursue this course of action.
  • Engage in mediation, as detailed above.
  • Take a private action under Section 108 of the Environmental Protection Agency, as detailed above.

The Free Legal Advice Centre (FLAC) has produced an information pamphlet on neighbour disputes which provides some very useful information and should also be consulted in this context here